Jungle - Happy Man

What makes a band worthy of whetting our appetite? We can talk about all the big hitting bangers, the searing hooks or the punch-in-the-face immediacy. Above it all, though, it’s that ability to separate us from everything else, immediately wrapping us in their glorious world.

That’s what Jungle have nailed down. Four years on from their self-titled debut that fizzed like a soundtrack recorded for a scorching hot summer day, their next move keeps the fire burning. ‘Happy Man’ and ‘House In LA’ are the opening one-two punch of their next chapter.

The latter a brooding cocktail of harmonies and slow-building revelations, like the reopening of a long-lost treasure, becoming more valuable as time passes. Yet it’s ‘Happy Man’ that clicks with an urgency that heralds their grand return as a genuine moment. With a sound that can only be Jungle, they’re running on ultimate party vibes - slipping into the bloodstream with a speed that has us remembering sun-kissed Sundays in the park. They don’t flutter into view, but strut in like a peacock with a plumage the world has to take notice of. Its effect is mesmerising.

No longer in the shadows, but basking in the sunshine - Jungle 2.0 are separated in their own lane, and nobody is coming close to sounding like them. Now the party can really begin. Jamie Muir